Beyoncé rose to fame in the late 1990s as the lead singer of Destiny's Child, one of the best-selling girl groups in history. Her debut solo album, Dangerously in Love (2003), became one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century. After Destiny's Child disbanded in 2005, Beyoncé released the funk-imbued B'Day (2006) and starred in the drama film Dreamgirls (2006).
Her marriage to rapper Jay-Z and portrayal of Etta James in the biopic Cadillac Records (2008) influenced her pop-oriented double album I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008). Through the 2000s, Beyoncé garnered the US Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles "Crazy in Love", "Baby Boy", "Check on It", "Irreplaceable", and "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)".
After forming the management company Parkwood Entertainment, Beyoncé embraced traditional R&B and soul on 4 (2011). The electronic-influenced Beyoncé (2013) popularized surprise and visual albums, inspiring the setting of Friday as Global Release Day, while the eclectic Lemonade (2016) sparked sociopolitical discourse and was the best-selling album of 2016.
Her ongoing trilogy project—consisting of the queer-inspired dance album Renaissance (2022) and the Americana-rooted country record Cowboy Carter (2024)—has highlighted the overlooked contributions of Black pioneers to American musical and cultural history, spawning the respective US number-one singles "Break My Soul" and "Texas Hold 'Em".
Beyoncé is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with estimated sales of over 200 million records. She is the most-certified female artist by the Recording Industry Association of America and the only woman whose first eight studio albums each debuted atop the US Billboard 200. One of the most-awarded artists in popular music, she is the recipient of a record 35 Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Peabody Award.
Beyoncé is the most-awarded artist of the BET Awards (36), MTV Video Music Awards (30), NAACP Image Awards (32), and Soul Train Music Awards (25). The first woman to headline an all-stadium tour, she is the highest-grossing Black live music artist.
Life and career
Early life
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles was born on September 4, 1981, in Houston, Texas. Her mother, Tina Knowles (née Beyoncé), was a hairdresser and salon owner, while her father, Mathew Knowles, was a sales manager at Xerox. Mathew is African-American, while Tina is Louisiana Creole with African, French, Irish, Breton, Norman, and Native American ancestry.
Beyoncé's younger sister, Solange, is also a singer and actress. They are descendants of Acadian militia officer Joseph Broussard, who was exiled to French Louisiana after the expulsion of the Acadians. Both sisters also have Belgian ancestry from Hainaut Province, Wallonia.
Beyoncé was raised within multiple religious traditions, attending both St. John's United Methodist Church and St. Mary of the Purification Catholic Church in Houston. Her first job was as a child, sweeping hair at her mother's hair salon, where she occasionally performed for customers. Beyoncé began her education at St.
Mary's Catholic Montessori School, where she also took dance classes. Her vocals were discovered by her dance instructor, who began humming a song that Beyoncé completed.
Beyoncé's interest in music and performing grew after she won a school talent show at the age of seven by singing John Lennon's "Imagine", winning against older competitors aged fifteen and sixteen. In 1990, a nine-year-old Beyoncé enrolled in Parker Elementary School, a music magnet school in Houston, where she performed with the school's choir.
She later attended the Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and subsequently Alief Elsik High School. Beyoncé was also a member of the choir at St. John's United Methodist Church, where she sang her first solo and was a soloist for two years.
1990–2001: Early career and Destiny's Child
In 1990, Beyoncé met singer LaTavia Roberson while at an audition for an all-girl entertainment group. Joined by Kelly Rowland two years later, the trio was placed in Girl's Tyme, a group that performed rap and dance routines on Houston's talent show circuit. In 1993, the group was entered in Star Search, the largest national talent show on television at the time.
Competing in the show's singing category, the group lost the competition, which Beyoncé attributed to a poor song choice. After LeToya Luckett joined in 1993, Girl's Tyme continued performing as an opening act for established R&B girl groups.
In 1995, Mathew left his job to manage the group, which halved the Knowles family's income, leading to them moving into separate apartments. The group was briefly signed by Elektra Records and later dropped. Ensuing tensions led to a six-month separation of Beyoncé's parents. The Knowles family later reunited and the group secured a contract with Columbia Records, aided by talent scout Teresa LaBarbera Whites.
The group adopted the name Destiny's Child in 1996, based upon a passage in the Book of Isaiah. In 1997, following their inclusion on the soundtrack for the film Men in Black, they released their debut single and first major hit, "No, No, No", which preceded their debut album, Destiny's Child (1998), a moderate success.
The group's second album, The Writing's on the Wall, was released in July 1999 and peaked at number five on the US Billboard 200, later achieving multi-platinum status in the country. The record spawned the singles "Bills, Bills, Bills", "Say My Name", and "Jumpin', Jumpin'"; the first two both peaked atop the US Billboard Hot 100. "Say My Name" won Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best R&B Song at the 2001 Grammy Awards. The Writing's on the Wall became one of the best-selling R&B albums of all time, having sold 13 million copies worldwide.
Following several lineup changes, Destiny's Child's final lineup comprised Beyoncé, Rowland, and Michelle Williams. In early 2001, while the group was completing work on their third album, Beyoncé secured a leading role in the MTV made-for-television film Carmen: A Hip Hopera, an interpretation of the 19th-century opera Carmen.
Destiny's Child's third studio album, Survivor, was released in May 2001; it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 663,000 copies in its first week. The album produced the Billboard Hot 100 number-ones "Independent Woman Part I" and "Bootylicious", as well as the title track, which peaked at number two. "Survivor" earned the group a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.
Following the release of their holiday album 8 Days of Christmas (2001), Destiny's Child announced a hiatus to allow each member to pursue solo careers.
2002–2007: Dangerously in Love and B'Day
In July 2002, Beyoncé made her theatrical film debut, portraying Foxxy Cleopatra in Austin Powers in Goldmember. She released "Work It Out" as the lead single from the film's soundtrack. Her breakthrough as a solo artist came when she featured on Jay-Z's track "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" from his album The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse (2002).
The single peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100. Beyoncé appeared as Jay-Z's girlfriend in the music video for the song, fueling speculation about a relationship. She later shared that they began dating when she was nineteen, after a year and a half of friendship.
In May 2003, Beyoncé released "Crazy in Love", the lead single from her debut solo studio album, Dangerously in Love. The song featured Jay-Z and became Beyoncé's first number-one single as a solo artist on the US Billboard Hot 100, topping the chart for eight consecutive weeks. On June 14, 2003, she premiered songs from Dangerously in Love during her first solo concert, which was broadcast as a pay-per-view television special.
Released ten days later, the album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 317,000 copies in its first week. The second single, "Baby Boy", spent nine consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100; "Me, Myself and I" and "Naughty Girl" both peaked within the top five. Dangerously in Love earned Beyoncé five awards at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, including Best Contemporary R&B Album and Best R&B Song for "Crazy in Love".
One of the best-selling albums of the 21st century, Dangerously in Love has sold more than 11 million copies globally.
Beyoncé starred alongside Cuba Gooding Jr. in the musical comedy The Fighting Temptations (2003), portraying a single mother and the love interest of Gooding's character. In November 2003, she embarked on the European Dangerously in Love Tour and North American Verizon Ladies First Tour alongside Missy Elliott and Alicia Keys.
On February 1, 2004, she performed "The Star-Spangled Banner", the national anthem of the US, at Super Bowl XXXVIII. In November 2004, Destiny's Child released their final album, titled Destiny Fulfilled. The record peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, spawning the US top-five singles "Lose My Breath" and "Soldier".
In 2005, Destiny's Child embarked on a global concert tour titled Destiny Fulfilled... and Lovin' It. The group announced that they were disbanding at the end of the tour. Destiny's Child released their first compilation album, #1's, in October 2005 and were honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in March 2006.
Beyoncé released "Déjà Vu" featuring Jay-Z as the lead single from her second studio album, B'Day, in June 2006. The song reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100. B'Day was released internationally on September 4, 2006, to coincide with her twenty-fifth birthday. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, with 541,000 copies sold in its first week. "Irreplaceable" was released as the second international single.
The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for ten consecutive weeks, becoming the best-performing chart hit of 2007. B'Day's other singles—"Ring the Alarm", "Get Me Bodied", and "Green Light"—each saw moderate chart success worldwide. At the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in 2007, B'Day and its songs received five nominations, winning Best Contemporary R&B Album.
For the following year's awards, songs from the album garnered two more nominations, including Record of the Year for "Irreplaceable".
Since its release, B'Day has sold over eight million copies worldwide. With the comedy film The Pink Panther (2006) and its theme song, "Check on It", Beyoncé became the first woman to simultaneously have a number-one film and single in the US. "Check on It" was included on #1's and on the European deluxe version of B'Day, and peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks.
Later that year, she starred in the drama film Dreamgirls, a cinematic adaptation of the 1981 Broadway musical, in which she portrayed a pop singer modeled after Diana Ross. In support of B'Day, Beyoncé embarked on the Beyoncé Experience in 2007, her first worldwide concert tour, which visited 97 venues.
Simultaneously, the album was re-released with additional tracks, including the single "Beautiful Liar", a duet with Shakira, which peaked at number three in the US. In December 2007, Beyoncé and Jay-Z became engaged.
2008–2010: I Am... Sasha Fierce and marriage
On April 4, 2008, Beyoncé and Jay-Z married in a small, private ceremony; the latter confirmed their marriage in an interview later that year. Their marriage served as a creative inspiration for her third studio album, I Am... Sasha Fierce. Released on November 12, 2008, I Am... Sasha Fierce formally introduced her alter ego Sasha Fierce.
A double album, it comprises two discs—I Am... and Sasha Fierce; the former contains slow and midtempo pop and R&B ballads, while the latter focuses on uptempo beats that blend electropop and Europop elements. Selling 482,000 copies in its first week, it debuted atop the Billboard 200, marking Beyoncé's third consecutive US number-one album.
I Am... Sasha Fierce included Beyoncé's fifth number-one on the Billboard Hot 100, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", as well as the UK chart-topping single, "If I Were a Boy". "Halo", which peaked at number five in the US, helped Beyoncé attain more top-ten singles on the list than any other woman during the 2000s.
Parodied and imitated around the world, the "Single Ladies" music video was described by the Toronto Star as the "first major dance craze" of the Internet age. At the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, the video won three categories, including Video of the Year. "Halo" and "Single Ladies" are both certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Since its release, I Am... Sasha Fierce has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. To promote I Am... Sasha Fierce, Beyoncé embarked on the worldwide I Am... Tour, her second headlining worldwide concert tour; it grossed $119.5 million. Beyoncé starred as blues singer Etta James in the musical biopic Cadillac Records (2008).
Her portrayal garnered her an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture. In the psychological thriller Obsessed (2009), which co-starred Ali Larter and Idris Elba, Beyoncé played a woman protecting her family from her husband's stalker. The film was critically panned, but Beyoncé's acting saw favorable reception. Obsessed performed strongly at the US box office, earning $68 million on a $20 million budget.
Beyoncé performed "America the Beautiful" at President Barack Obama's 2009 presidential inauguration and "At Last" during the first inaugural dance. At the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards in 2010, she received ten nominations—both for I Am... Sasha Fierce and for her work in film soundtracks—tying with Lauryn Hill for most Grammy nominations in a single year by a female artist.
Beyoncé won six of those nominations, including Best Contemporary R&B Album for I Am... Sasha Fierce and Song of the Year for "Single Ladies", breaking a record she previously tied in 2004 for the most Grammy Awards won in a single night by a female artist. In 2010, Beyoncé provided vocals on Lady Gaga's single "Telephone", from the latter's extended play The Fame Monster (2009). It peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.
2010–2012: 4 and first child
In January 2010, Beyoncé announced a hiatus from her music career. Over the nine-month break, she traveled to several European cities, the Great Wall of China, the Egyptian pyramids, Australia, and English music festivals, and attended museum exhibitions and ballet performances. "Eat, Play, Love", a cover story written by Beyoncé for Essence that detailed her career break, won her a writing award from the New York Association of Black Journalists.
Around this time, she miscarried, retrospectively describing it as "the saddest thing" she had endured. Beyoncé returned to the studio and wrote music to cope with the loss. In September 2010, Beyoncé made her runway modelling debut at Tom Ford's Spring/Summer 2011 fashion show. In March 2011, her father Mathew stopped managing her career.
A month later, during a photoshoot in Paris for her upcoming album cover, Beyoncé unexpectedly discovered she was pregnant.
